Historical encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Morgan County, Part 156

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913. cn; Short, William F., 1829- 4n
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1286

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ment, even after the Council had adopted the ordinance providing for the plank road. He finally persuaded the late Marshall P. Ayers to pave the section of street in front of his bank with vitrified brick, so that the people might see a section of roadway. in operation. As soon as the superior advantages of this form of pavement were seen, the Council unanimously rescinded the original act and voted to pave East State Street with brick. From that time forward the success of the brick pavement was assured, and many miles of it were constructed within a few years following the passage of the original ordinance.

Mr. Carter was an active supporter of the Union during the Civil War. He was a member of the Union League, and his barn was one of the "Underground Railway stations" which marked the progress of the escaping slaves in their path to freedom. Both father and son were deeply interested in the welfare of the school system, and after the organization of the public school system of the State, W. C. Carter

served for a long period as School Director. In religion he was a devoted member of the Congregational Church. Though a man of strong convictions, he was modest and retiring in his disposition, and prone to give to others the credit for advancing public enterprises which really should have been given to him. He never vacillated between right and wrong, but firmly adhered to those principles of hon- esty and justice which constituted the guide of his forefathers.

On November 19, 1846, Mr. Carter was united in marriage with Julia Ann Wolcott, daughter of Elihu Wolcott, one of the representative citi- zens of Jacksonville during its early days. Mr. Wolcott was born in Windsor. Conn., and camc to Morgan County with his family in 1830, ar- riving in the county on November 5th of that ycar. He surveyed the route of the old Sanga- mon & Morgan Railroad, and was identified with various other enterprises of importance in Mor- gan County. Mrs. Carter was born in Windsor, Conn., June 20, 1826, and was graduated from the Jacksonville Female Academy in the class of 1845, her sole classmate being Miss Kate Murdock. She borc her husband the following named children: Samuel Wolcott, a farmer re- siding on Joy Prairie; William Chauncy and Edwin, who died in Infancy; William Wallace. who resides on the homestead; Ella Marion,

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who died at the age of twenty-eight; Walter Lee, residing on the homestead; Prof. Truman P. Carter, of Jacksonville; and Helen Hooker and Herbert, twins. Of the latter Helen H. died in infancy. Herbert was graduated from Illi- nois College in 1892, and from Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia in the class of 1895; engaged in the drug business in Jackson- ville for two or three years; returned to Phila- delphia to take a special course on diseases of the nose and throat, and died there in 1899. Mr. Carter and his wife gave to all their chil- dren excellent educational advantages, and they have honored the family name by their upright and useful lives.

CARTER, Scott P., a well known and success- ful contractor of Jacksonville, Morgan County, Ill., was born at Exeter, Ill., July 4, 1860, the son of Cyrus C. and Julia A. (Otis) Carter, na- tives of Canada- the former born in Montreal, August 12, 1823, and the latter, in Compton, May 10, 1832. In 1844 Cyrus C. Carter settled at Exter, Ill., and still resides on a farm in the vicinity of that place. By occupation he has been a maker of the early style of car- riages and wagons, in which he became quite prominent. He has patented seven different de- vices, and is the inventor of the runner wheat- drill. In politics, he is a strong Republican, and was an ardent supporter of Lincoln and the elder Yates. On account of defective sight, he was disqualified as a soldier, but at home sup- ported the Union cause to the best of his abil- ity. He was married April 10, 1855, to Julia A. Otis, whose ancestors came to this country on the "Mayflower." She is also still living. They are the parents of the following named chil- dren: Charles C., born June 17, 1857; Scott P., born July 4, 1860; Curtis C., born August 26, 1867; and Jesse B., born September 10, 1869.

Mr. Carter attended the public schools in his youth, and at the age of twenty-one years went to Idaho, Montana and Minnesota, in the em- ploy of the Northern Pacific Railway Company, with which he remained for two years. At the end of that period he worked as a carpenter in Kansas City, St. Paul, Chicago and other places, and was afterward employed in the building department of the Wabash Railroad. In the fall of 1890, he located in Jacksonville and entered into business as a building contrac- tor, in which line he has become widely and favorably known.

On January 3, 1893, Mr. Carter was joined in wedlock with Minnie A. Van Winkle, a daughter of Atherton and Tabitha Ellen (Lutrell) Van Winkle. She is a graduate of Brown's Business College, Jacksonville, and was for many years a stenographer for the old Jacksonville South- eastern Railroad Company. Subsequently she was employed in the same capacity by the Mer- cantile Law Company of St. Louis. In 1824, be- fore his marriage, John R. Lutrell, her grand- father, journeyed to Morgan County, from Todd County, Ky. Mrs. Carter's parents were born in Morgan County, where her father carried on farming all his life. He served during the Civil War in Company A, Thirty-second Regi- ment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and died March 2, 1871, on his farm near Franklin, Mor- gan County. Three children resulted from the union of Mr. and Mrs. Carter, namely: Curtis Atherton, born November 25, 1893; Lillian Ha- zel, born November 19, 1895; and Lloyd Aubrey, born March 29, 1898.

In politics, Mr. Carter is a supporter of the Republican party. Fraternally, he is affiliated with Jacksonville Lodge, No. 4, I. O. O. F., which he joined in 1893, having first become a member of the order in 1882. He is also identi- fied with the Athens Court, No. 30, Court of Honor, and Lincoln Council, No. 455, Mutual Protective League. He is a very energetic and progressive man, and his business operations have been attended by well merited success.

CATLIN, (Capt.) Charles Augustus, of Jackson- ville, Ill., District Agent for the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company of Milwaukee, Wis., was born in Hancock County, Ill., March 23, 1839, the youngest child of Joel and Calista (Hawley) Catlin. His father, a native of Con- necticut, learned the trade of a silversmith in early life, and soon after his marriage removed to Augusta, Ga., where he remained in business until four children had been born into the family. Being a strong anti-slavery man, he decided to leave that State and removed to a section where he would be enabled to rear his children amid surroundings of a different po- litical nature. Coming overland to Illinois in the fall of 1832, he established himself in busi- ness as a silversmith and watchmaker in Jack- sonville. In 1836 he removed to Hancock County, Ill., and in company with William Ab- ernathy, a relative, he laid out and founded the town of Augusta, which they named for the

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Georgia city. In that county he also engaged in farming. He became intimately acquainted with Joseph Smith, the head of the Mormon Church, who gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon, which remains an heirloom in possession of the Catlin family. Mr. Catlin was a strong anti- Mormon, and became one of the leaders in the movement which finally resulted in the removal of that sect from Nauvoo to Salt Lake, Utah. Such an active part did he take in the campaign against the Mormons that the leaders of the church at one time are said to have placed a price upon his head. During his residence in Hancock County his home was one of the sta- tions of the "Underground Railroad," and through his instrumentality many slaves were assisted to freedom.

In 1852 Mr. Catlin returned to Jacksonville to become agent for the Sangamon & Morgan Railway Company, afterward the Great West- ern, and now a part of the Wabash system. During the quarter of a century of his residence in Jacksonville, he was intimately associated with such men as the Rev. William Kirby, Elihu Wolcott, Dr. J. M. Sturtevant, Prof. Jona- than B. Turner and others, in their well-directed efforts to ameliorate the condition of the slaves. He was deeply interested in religious work. He became a communicant of the Pres- byterian Church before removing from Con- necticut, and served as an Elder in the churches of this denomination in Augusta, Ga., Augusta, Ill., and Jacksonville, filling this office in the First Presbyterian (now the State Street Presbyterian) Church of Jacksonville at the time of his death in 1879, at the age of eighty-five years. For some time he also served as Treasurer of the Jacksonville Female Acad- cmy and of Illinois College. His wife's death occurred in 1875. They had seven children, as follows: John Hawley. William Edwin, Sarah (wife of Jeremiah Pierson), James Kent, Mary, one child who died in infancy. and C. Augustus. James Kent Catlin served as an aid-de-camp on the staff of General B. H. Grierson, and was killed February 22, 1864, at the age of thirty-one years, by a detachment of Forrest's cavalry.

Captain Catlin received his education in the Jacksonville public schools, being graduated from the High School under Dr. Newton Bate- man. He learned the drug business in the store of Robert Hockenhull, and was in his employ at the outbreak of the Civil War. On Septem-

ber 2, 1862, he enlisted for service in the Union Army, assisting in the organization of Com- pany C, One Hundred and First Illinois Volun- tcer infantry, of which he was at once elected First Lieutenant. This regiment went to Cairo, 111., doing provost duty; from there to Columbus, Ky., and thence to Davies' Mills, Tenn., where it became a part of the First Brigade of Ross's Division of the Army of the Tennessee, General Grant commanding. On the night of their ar- rival at Davies' Mills, Captain Catlin was as- signed to duty as aid-de-camp on the staff of Colonel John Mason Loomis, commanding the brigade. Proceeding toward Vicksburg as far as Oxford, Miss., in the fall of 1862, they partic- ipated in the movement against that stronghold. The supplies for the army having been destroyed at Holly Springs, Miss., the army went into winter quarters and Captain Catlin was ordered to Memphis, where he was assigned to duty as Judge Advocate of a Court of Inquiry. Subse- quently he was assigned as Provost Marshal on the west side of the Mississippi River, opposite Vicksburg; April 28, 1863, he was promoted to Captain, and became Assistant Provost Mar- shal to the Army of the Tennessee, with head- quarters at Yazoo Landing. After the fall of Vicksburg, July 4, 1863, he was stationed in that city, and had charge of the work of pa- roling the prisoners which followed the capitu- lation. The prisoners paroled were classified as follows: One Lieutenant General, 4 Major Generals, 10 Brigadier Generals, 49 Colonels, 37 Lieutenant Colonels, 87 Majors, 578 Captains, 606 First Lieutenants, 513 Second Lieutenants, 2.14 Third Lieutenants, 3 Chaplains, 13 Aides, 1 Cadet, 231 non-commissioned staft officers, 252 First Sergeants, 1,858 Sergeants, 1,621 Corpo- rals, 14 artificers, 16 musicians, 5 sutlers, 115 citizen employes-a total of 21,491 men.

After performing this duty he was granted leave of absence that he might keep his en- gagement to marry. Leaving the field, he re- turned to Illinois, and immediately continued his journey to Norristown, Pa .. where, on Au- gust 26, 1863, he was united in marriage with Carrie Twining. Rejoining his regiment at Union City, Tenn., soon afterward, In com- mand of four companies of his regiment and a guide, he was ordered to form a junction some thirty miles in the interior (subsisting on the country ) with a force from Paducah, Ky., for the purpose of relieving that section of the State

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HISTORY OF MORGAN COUNTY.

from the Confederates who had been busily conscripting men. Upon the conclusion of this task he rejoined his regiment at Louisville, Ky., and proceeded with it to Bridgeport, Ala., where he was Inspector of the First Brigade of the Third Division of the Eleventh Army Corps, serving in this capacity up to the time of his resignation. While serving with this section of the army, Captain Catlin participated in one of the most important movements of the campaign-the relief of the be- sieged Army of the Cumberland, which after the battle of Chickamauga returned to Chattanooga and vicinity, it being cut off from communication with the north by the oc- cupation of Lookout Valley by the enemy. The Eleventh Corps crossed the Tennessee River at Bridgeport, Ala., about twenty miles from Chat- tanooga, and drove the enemy out of Lookout Valley, opening up communications with the Army of the Cumberland, the river only separat- ing. That night the Confederates made a deter- mined attack, hoping to destroy the Quarter- master and Commissary supplies that were be- ing taken to the besieged forces. The necessity of this movement may be better appreciated when it is known that the sole method of pro- curing means of subsistence up to that time had been by pack train over a mountain trail, a distance of some sixty miles. This night en- gagement, known in history as the battle of Wauhatchie, was a spirited one, and the suc- cess which attended it rendered it the opening wedge to the complete relief of the Army of the Cumberland from a most desperate situation. The command with which Captain Catlin was identified afterward participated in the battle of Mission Ridge, one of the fiercest contests of the entire war; in the battle of Lookout Moun- tain, the relief of Burnside at Knoxville, and the driving of Longstreet out of Tennessee. In the spring of 1864, following the news of the death of his brother, Captain Catlin received another leave of absence that he might return home and look after the interests of his family. Believing it to be his duty henceforth to remain at home, he tendered his resignation April 16, 1864, after an active and loyal service in the defense of the Union.

Going to Pekin, Ill., Capt. Catlin there en- gaged in the drug business until his return to Jacksonville, in the fall of 1869, to become agent for the Northwestern Mutual Life In- surance Company of Milwaukee, Wis. Since

that time he has continued to represent that great corporation in Jacksonville and vicinity as District Agent, and is now, in length of serv- ice, the oldest representative of the company. In a calling where great opportunities for fi- nancial gain are afforded through the exercise of corrupt practices, Captain Catlin has builded a reputation for integrity and a high sense of personal honor that is all too uncommon in these days. In his fraternal relations he is prominent in Masonry. He is a member of Jacksonville Lodge, No. 570, A. F. & A. M .; Jacksonville Chapter, No. 3, R. A. M .; Jackson- ville Council, No. 5, R. & S. M .; Hospitaler Com- mandery, No. 31, K. T .; and of the Mystic Shrine and the Consistory at Peoria, Ill., having taken the thirty-second degree. He is also a charter member and now (1905) Commander of Matt Starr Post, No. 378, G. A. R. By his first marriage he became the father of four chil- dren, namely: Carrie Augusta, deceased; Don- ald Cameron, of New York City; Frank Hawley, residing in the South; and Harry, who died in infancy. Carrie (Twining) Catlin died June 18, 1892. On February 25, 1896, he married Mrs. Helen Baxter, of Griggsville, Ill., who died six weeks later. His third marriage, which oc- curred March 8, 1900, united him with Mrs. Roxanna Goltra Towne.

CHAMBERS, (Colonel) George Maxwell, pio- neer merchant and stock-dealer of Morgan County, Ill., was born in Maryland in 1800, and in childhood was taken by his parents to Ken- tucky, where he resided until 1837. His father, Rowland Ross Chambers, died in Kentucky. In 1828 Colonel Chambers married Eleanor E. Ir- win, who was born in Fayette County, Ky., in 1808. In 1837 he moved to Illinois, locating at Jacksonville, where for about twelve years he engaged in general merchandising. During this period he purchased considerable farming land, which is now within the city limits of Jackson- ville. He was one of the first men to engage in the pork-packing industry at Meredosia, and for some time was likewise interested in gen- eral merchandising, with others at that place, although retaining his residence in Jackson- ville. In 1846 he erected a large brick residence on the south side of State Street, between Dia- mond and Westminster Streets, a structure that was considered a mansion in the early days. It is still standing, one of the landmarks of Mor- gan County.

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HISTORY OF MORGAN COUNTY.

Colonel Chambers held a commission as Colonel in the State Militia in the early '40s. Upon the outbreak of the Mexican War, he enlisted with the first troops sent out from Illinois, and was assigned to the Commissary Department. In politics he was originally a Whig; but when, in 1856, the majority of the adherents of that party cast their fortunes with the new Republican organization, he became a Democrat, and was loyal to that party during the remainder of his life. His death occurred in August, 1891, and his wife preceded him in 1888.

Colonel Chambers and his wife became the parents of the following children: Catherine L., deceased, wife of Dr. G. R. Henry, of Burling- ton, Iowa; Rowland Ross, of Jacksonville; Nancy M., deceased, wife of George W. Moore, of Morgan County; John Irwin, of Jacksonville; Anna E., wife of J. N. Taylor, of Omaha, Neb .; George M., deceased; Leonard W., of Jackson- ville; and Mrs. Ella Bradish, of Springfield, th. Colonel Chambers was recognized as one of the strong and rugged men of Morgan Coun- ty, and his life made an indelible impress upon the progress of the community. He was public- spirited and unselfish, and never hesitated to do what he could for the advancement of the general welfare.

CHAMBERS, John Irwin. retired, Jacksonville, Ill., was born in Woodford County, Ky., May 16, 1836, and is the fourth child and second son of Colonel George M. and Eleanor E. (Irwin) Chambers. In April, 1837, he was brought by his parents to Jacksonville, where his entire life since that time has been spent. He re- ceived his education in the public schools of Jacksonville, and after the completion of his studies he engaged in farming. Subsequently , he established himself in the lumber business, in which he succeeded, being identified with that branch of trade for about twenty-three years. Mr. Chambers has always been an nin- swerving Democrat, and though he has never sought political honors, he served two terms as Alderman from the Second Ward, and for some time as a member of the Board of Edu- cation. For a number of years he was Trustee of the State Street Presbyterian Church. In Masonry he affiliates with Jacksonville Lodge, No. 570, A. F. & A. M., and with Hospitaler Com- mandery, No. 31. K. T. Mr. Chambers was united in marriage September 26, 1870, with

Alice E. Askew, daughter of Dr. Joseph Askew, for many years a successful and highly respect- ed practitioner of Morgan County. They have four children, namely: Joseph Askew. who resides in California; Eleanor I., wife of J. Herbert McCune, of Ipava, Ill .; George M., of Milwaukee, Ore .; and John I., Jr., of The Dalles, that State.

CHRISTIANER. George H., agriculturist, Mor- gan County, Ill., living on his farm in Section 34, Meredosia township, was born near Beards- town, Cass County, Ill., October 18, 1858, the son of J. F. and A. M. ( Hobrook) Christianer, both natives of Germany. In 1836 the father, who was a farmer, emigrated to America from Han- over, Germany. George H. Christianer was ed- ucated in the schools of Cass County, and when of age engaged in farming on his own account. In 1885, he moved to his present farm and now owns an estate of 220 acres located in Sections 34 and 35. He was married October 16, 1884, to Sophia Hofener, daughter of Fred Hofener, of Christian County, and a prominent farmer whose home was then near Taylorville. To Mr. Christianer and wife have been born three chil- dren-Bertha, Otto and Rosa (who died in in- fancy ). Mr. Christianer and family are mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, at Mere- dosia, and he is a Republican in politics. His farm is well improved, and has been brought to its present high state of cultivation largely by himself.

CLAMPIT. Louis Henry, M. D., Assistant Phy- sician and Surgeon at the Illinois Central Hos- pital for the Insane, Jacksonville, Ill., was born within three miles of that city August 18, 1860, the son of William H. and Mary Elizabeth Clampit. William Henry Clampit was a farmer and a native of Kentucky and became one of the early settlers of Morgan County. Louis H. Clampit passed his youthful days upon his fa- ther's farm. He attended the district schools and the city public schools, and was a student for three years at the Illinois College; then pur- sued a course in the Jacksonville Business Col- lege, and passed one year (1877-78) in Kansas as bookkeeper in the Topcka Foundry and Iron Works. Returning to Jacksonville he began the study of medicine with Dr. H. H. King, and in 1884 finished his professional coursc at the Hospital Medical College. Louisville, Ky. He commenced practice at Road House, Ill., and

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HISTORY OF MORGAN COUNTY.

continued it in that town for five years, while there having charge of the medical work for the C. & A. Railroad, being their Local Surgeon in 1889. In that year he returned to Jacksonville and continued there in active general practice until 1901, when he was appointed Assistant Surgeon to the Asylum for the Insane, and is still filling that position.

Dr. Clampit was married June 30, 1885, to Lena C. Watson, daughter of James R. and Susan Watson, of Louisville, Ky. Mr. and Mrs. Clampit were the parents of five children, one of whom died in infancy. Those living are: William W., Louis H., Jr., Clarence M. and Mar- garet E. Dr. Clampit is a member of the M. E. Church and fraternally a Mason, both Chap- ter and Knights Templar. He was a member of the city Board of Education for five years and City Health Warden for two years.

William H. Clampit, father of our subject, was born in Kentucky September 8, 1825, a son of Moses and Lucy (Rucker) Clampit. Moses Clampit and family moved from Kentucky to Morgan County, Ill., in the first quarter of the last century and engaged in farming. William H. Clampit was married November 16, 1847, to Mary E. Akers, a daughter of Peter and Elizabeth (Read) Akers. Mr. and Mrs. Wil- liam H. Clampit were the parents of eleven children; six died in infancy, tnose living be- ing Charles, Moses, Dr. Louis H., Thomas B. and Preston. W. H. Clampit was connected with the M. E. Church and the School Board; was a member of the I. O. O. F., and a Repub- lican. At the time of his death, July 25, 1900. he left 400 acres of land as part of his estate. He has been a resident of Jacksonville since 1896, and his widow, who was born in 1832, still lives in the city.

CLARY, John, now retired from active tarm- ing, but still one of the most extensive land- holders in Morgan County, Ill., was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, August 16, 1831. He is a son of Philip and Mary (Heffernan) Clary, also natives of County Tipperary. Philip Clary and his wife were both born in 1802, the husband being a farmer. They came to the United States March 25, 1840, and after a year spent in Ohio, located in LaSalle County, Ill. The father died at Odell, Ill., May 17, 1884, his wife having passed away at Ottawa, Ill., in 1861.

John Clary received his early mental train-

ing in the common schools of Ireland and came to the United States with his parents at the age of nine years. He remained with the family one year in Ohio, and moved with them to LaSalle County, where he remained until he was twenty-four years old. In 1855 he migrated to the far West, and spent ten years in mining and prospecting, chiefly in Montana. Return- ing to Jacksonville, January 16, 1865, he bought a tract of 200 acres and engaged in farming until June 2, 1904, when he retired from active work and moved to Jacksonville, where he pur- chased valuable city property. He still re- tains the ownership and management of his original farm, and owns several other proper- ties, aggregating 627 acres of land in Morgan County.

On September 13, 1866, Mr. Clary was united in marriage with Mary Killam, a daughter of Samuel and Margaret (Haxby) Killam, of Eng- lish descent. Ten children resulted from this union, namely: John W., Assessor and Treas- urer of Morgan County; Samuel Philip; Clara; Anna, who died at the age of nineteen years; Gertrude, wife of Edward Stevenson, of Mor- gan County; Mary; Elizabeth, deceased; Mich- ael: Zella, deceased; and Jeffrey. In politics Mr. Cleary is a strong Democrat but has never sought public office. In private life he has al- ways been greatly respected for his upright character and honorable dealings.

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Historical encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Morgan County, Part 156

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913. cn; Short, William F., 1829- 4n Publication date: 1906 Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1286

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913. cn; Short, William F., 1829- 4n
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1286